


Real Person Fiction

by MaxWrite



Series: Hockey Night in Canada and Everything After [8]
Category: Actor RPF, American Actor RPF, British Actor RPF, Mission: Impossible (Movies) RPF, Mission: Impossible RPF
Genre: M/M, Mental Health Issues, RPF, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-30
Updated: 2015-08-30
Packaged: 2018-04-18 01:05:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4686440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaxWrite/pseuds/MaxWrite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While visiting Tom and Simon, Chris gets ideas for the plot of <i>Mission: Impossible 5</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Real Person Fiction

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place late summer 2013. **SPOILERS** for Mission: Impossible 3, Ghost Protocol, and Rogue Nation.

"Yeah, I'm with Tom now. He just stepped away for a minute. I ran our ideas by him. He's on board so far. We have the basic ideas down … except, well … yeah, that … nah, haven't figured it out yet … I know, I know, without that, everything else falls flat."

At Tom and Simon's L.A. home, Chris is on his phone with his co-writer in a bright, airy room on the second floor. It's not unlike a meeting room in a posh office building, but more inviting in shades ranging from off-white to chocolate brown; hardwood flooring the color of sand. There's a long, rectangular mahogany table taking up two thirds of the room, surround by chairs draped in simple white cloth covers. There's a big flat-screen mounted to the wall at one end of the room, behind the head of the table. At the opposite end is a cozy area with stone-colored armchairs and a modern looking glass-and-bronze coffee table on a white area rug. There's a fireplace in the wall there as well. Large sepia-tone photos adorn the walls, eleven-by-seventeens by the look of them; candids of family, friends, even some behind-the-scenes stuff.

It's the sort of space you'd see in a magazine; monochrome and minimalist. The only real color in the space comes in the form of fresh flowers that sit at the table's center – deep purple dahlias.

Chris is looking out through a glass wall with sliding doors that lead out onto the large, circular balcony above the backyard. "I'm not sure romance is the way to go," he says. "Every time I try to write it, it comes off feeling forced. But we need that emotional component. You text me asap if you think of anything, I'll do the same … all right, later, Drew."

He hangs up and looks around. Tom isn't back yet, so he goes wandering, looking at the pictures on the walls. There's one of Tom and Simon on the set of _Ghost Protocol_. They're wearing their outfits for the Burj stunt scene and are standing close together, talking and laughing. The edges and background of the shot are filled with crew going about their business. Tom and Simon seem oblivious to them, completely focused on one another.

Chris, having written that film, was there with them, on set. He wonders if this is one of the moments in which they were falling in love right in front of everyone. It certainly looks like it, but at the time he had no idea. He wonders if anyone else noticed. Now, looking at this photo of them blatantly gazing at one another in the middle of the bustling movie set, he wonders how anyone could have missed it.

Just then something small and fluffy comes trotting into the room. The little miniature schnauzer Chris had met upon his arrival had hung around for a while as Chris and Tom had chatted but then had disappeared, apparently bored with their movie talk. Now she's back with a ball in her mouth. She stops at his feet and places the ball on the floor.

"Hello, Minnie," Chris says, looking apologetically down at her. "I love an endless game of fetch as much as the next guy, but this is probably a bad time."

"Minnie, no," says Tom as he reenters the room. He is casual in jeans, a black t-shirt and bare feet, but nonetheless looks perfect. His hair is tousled and his bangs flop down in his eyes as he hurries over and bends to pick up Minnie's ball. He straightens up and sweeps his bangs out of his eyes, but they're back the second he moves his head. "Go find Daddy," he says in a high-pitched voice as he coaxes Minnie out of the room. He tosses the ball into the hallway and shuts the door once she's gone. "Sorry about that," he says, coming back to take his seat at the table. He's chosen the seat at the very end of one of the table's two longer sides, next to the head of the table where Chris has been invited to sit. "I guess she likes you. If you start throwing that ball, you're probably gonna have to move in."

"I wouldn't mind if we didn't have work to do. She's a sweet girl."

"Okay, where were we?"

They pick up where they left off, discussing plot details. As they talk, Chris scrawls notes on the large notepad he's brought with him. The eight-by-ten sheet of paper he's writing on is a mess of tight, boxy print and little crudely-drawn illustrations. It soon fills up, so he flips it back to join the other full sheets and starts on a new page.

"Now, about our leading lady, Ilsa," he says, still writing. "She's not IMF. She's someone new entirely and she's completely Ethan's equal. She needs to hold her own with him."

"What's her role?" asks Tom. "Ally? Villain? Double agent?"

"Ally, ultimately, but with a huge question mark throughout much of the film. And her wavering allegiance gets her in trouble."

"So, Ethan will have to rescue her at some point."

"Yeah, but I'm not sure about her being our main damsel in distress. Something about that doesn't sit right with me. Ethan will be helping her out of a tight spot for sure, but seeing as he's only just met her, I feel like we need someone else for him to rescue, someone he has a history with. Piling the bulk of the emotional weight on this new character isn't giving me the impact I want."

"Hmm … Paula's definitely not available?"

"Not for the type of schedule we're proposing, no."

Tom's phone beeps. With a look of apology, he pulls it out and peeks at the screen. A little smile touches his lips. "It's Simon texting from his office downstairs. He doesn't know you're here yet. I didn't wanna bother him 'cause he's working on a project too. I figured you two could say hi a bit later … I probably shouldn't have sent Minnie to go bug him. Mind if I reply?"

"No, no, go ahead."

The reply only takes a few seconds and then they continue working. When Tom gets another message a minute later, he glances at it and says, "He'll be up to say hi in a few." Ten minutes later there's a knock on the door and Simon pokes his head in. Chris and Tom stand as Simon approaches, and Tom places a hand on Simon's lower back when Simon comes to stand at his side.

Chris and Simon shake hands and exchange pleasantries. Chris doesn't really know Simon that well. On the set of _Ghost Protocol_ Chris had worked primarily with Tom and the director. He hasn't actually seen Simon since the wedding, and even then they didn't get to talk for very long. He looks great; slender, strawberry blond with a short beard, glasses perched on his nose. He's wearing a maroon Henley shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows and two of the five buttons down the chest undone. The collar is loose, showing a thin silver chain lying delicately over his clavicle.

Simon's presence instantly changes Tom. He goes from regular attractive Tom (and "regular" for Tom is still pretty unreal) to glowingly-in-love Tom. His already brilliant smile goes megawatt. As he watches Simon he can't stop smiling and his pretty green eyes are lit up. He's beaming.

Tom gestures for Simon to sit where he was sitting; the chair closest to Chris's chair. Tom takes the seat to Simon's left. Chris fills Simon in on what they have so far.

"How do you feel about Benji getting a little more action this time around?" Chris asks Simon. "He's been in the field a while now. We should show the audience what he's learned."

"Yeah, that'd be great," Simon agrees. "My last job put some serious fight training under my belt."

"That movie I mentioned you need to see, remember?" Tom says to Chris.

"You're better at plugging my stuff than I am," Simon says.

"It's my pleasure. Especially when the work is that good."

"All right, all right, I'll slip you that fifty I promised you later. You've earned it."

"I don't take money for plugs. You pay me in kisses and back rubs."

"Well, here's your first payment."

Chris is busy jotting down notes about a fight scene for Benji. In his periphery he sees Simon and Tom lean in for a quick peck and he remembers their current dilemma. "We were just discussing romantic subplots when you arrived," he says as he writes.

"Are Brandt and Benji finally gonna do it?" Simon asks.

"It might just come to that if we can't figure this out," Tom says.

"What about Julia?" asks Simon, referring to Ethan's wife in the series.

Tom shakes his head. "She's essentially in witness protection. Any contact with Ethan would put her in danger all over again. He'd never risk that."

"Is Ethan even ready to move on? It hasn't been that long since he had to let her go. Should we be forcing a romance on him at this point? Might come off feeling forced."

"I was thinking the same thing," Chris says. He goes back a page in his notes to frown at something he'd scribbled earlier, a short note that reads: _"romance or no?"_

"Either way, it has to be about Ethan's journey," Tom says. "At the beginning of G.P. he's the reluctant hero. He isn't sure he wants to be an agent anymore, but by the end he realizes he still loves his job. And because he's lost his wife, the job is basically all he has, so I think this film has to start off with him living, eating, breathing his work. He's thrown himself back into it with a vengeance and he's got basically nothing else."

"And by the end he works out what's really important," Simon adds.

"Exactly."

"Which is?" Chris asks, bringing them back to the issue at hand.

"Does it need to be romantic?" Tom asks. "Couldn't it be like … his team? His friends?"

"Yeah, could be. I'm just concerned about it feeling scattered and unfocused. Team stuff is great and we'll have plenty of that, but I'd like to have one core relationship to focus on."

"Agreed. We can come back to that. What about locations?"

"I've got some ideas. I'm seeing Ethan on a motorcycle at some point, naturally. So I was thinking Morocco. There's this great stretch of highway there that would be ideal for a motorcycle chase. I'm also partial to Vienna. A while back I visited an opera house in France and I couldn't help but think that it would be perfect for an action sequence. Snipers, swinging from the rafters, et cetera. So I'm wondering if we can find an opera house in Vienna that we could use."

Tom nods. "We should get the scouts on that asap. Tell me more about this bike chase."

"Ethan chasing Ilsa. You chasing her. Really tight shots, so tight you can see how close your knee gets to the road as you take a turn."

"God, I love shit like that," Tom says wistfully.

"I thought you'd approve. But speaking of action sequences, we still need a big opening stunt. And it's gotta top the Burj."

"What about an airplane? Maybe there's a package on the plane and Ethan's gotta get to it before the plane takes off. But then it _does_ take off before can he get inside because …" Tom pauses and looks at Simon. "It takes too long for Benji to get the door open."

"Benji just hates opening doors for that man," Simon says. "So, where would Ethan even be at that point?"

"On the plane," says Chris. Simon frowns in confusion, but Tom merely smiles. Chris clarifies, "You know, like … _on_ the plane."

"Jesus fucking christ," Tom chuckles to himself, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose. He's actually considering it, though. He's laughing as though the idea is ludicrously out of the question, but his mirth doesn't quite reach his eyes, because behind those eyes the brain is already busy, working out the logistics. He _is_ considering it.

"Ohhh," says Simon. "Well, he can do that, no sweat."

"Oh, I can?" asks Tom.

"Sure, you can. You can do anything. You climb buildings, you drive cars off of ledges" –

"Die? Pretty sure I can do that too."

"Pfft, how many times have you performed some death-defying stunt?"

"I don't know. A lot."

"Right, and how many times have you died?"

Tom smiles and gives Simon an indulgent, adoring look. "Never."

"Exactly!"

Chris watches the exchange with intense curiosity. He's been good friends with Tom for years but he hasn't had much time to get to know this Tom, Simon's partner Tom. He wasn't sure what to expect from them as a couple because they seem like such opposites, and whatever drivel the media's been belching out about them is something Chris has been careful to avoid.

Now they're riffing off each other, bantering back and forth. If Chris wasn't so engrossed in analyzing them he might feel a bit like a third wheel. He has to admit, they never made sense as a couple in his mind. On screen, sure; opposites make great comedic duos. But the thought of them together in real life never gelled in Chris's head. Not until now.

Simon reaches out to run his fingers through Tom's unruly bangs a few times as the two of them chat. He does it easily, without hesitation and without mentioning it at all. Once Tom's hair has been tamed, Simon's hand drops to the back of Tom's neck to gently massage there as though Simon doesn't want to lose contact just yet. As for Tom, he normally has a heavy hand when giving his friends affectionate pats and squeezes, but when his hand finds Simon's knee, the touch is gentle.

Chris squints a little and tries to see Ethan and Benji before him instead of Tom and Simon. His eyes go to Simon's hand on Tom's neck, Tom's hand on Simon's knee. Would Ethan and Benji be this comfortable in each other's personal space? Maybe not quite so caressing, but little touches here and there to show support and affection? Maybe.

Of course, as those little touches linger on and on, Chris begins to wonder something else. He flips forward in his notepad to his "romance or no?" note, looks over the options he'd written in around it: "Ethan/Jane", "Ethan/Julia", "Ethan/Ilsa". He taps his pen against the page, looking from the note to the two men before him.

Simon is attractive. That's not how he's marketed as an actor and thus not a way in which Chris has ever thought of him before, but he is very attractive, and now Chris's director's eye is working overtime, taking in Simon's features and picturing all the ways the camera will capture him best. He is growing nicely into his mid-forties, his face having lost its rounded cuteness and taking on something more roguish, mature and sexy. There are bulges of muscle at his biceps beneath the thin maroon fabric. Not as impressive as Tom's, but good. Still good.

The boyishness in Tom's face has been tempered over time. He too looks more mature now, but not fifty-one. And still gorgeous, especially when he smiles, which he is doing a lot as he talks with Simon. Sometimes it's hard to not want to turn a camera on him. A man who looks like that in his fifties was created to be captured on film. And that look on his face – that glowing smile, the adoring look of love – only makes it worse. Or better as it were. It would be a shame to not have a reason for Ethan to look like that.

It would also be a shame to not showcase all of this incredible chemistry Chris is witnessing.

Chris's romance options for Ethan all get scribbled over and he replaces them with: _"buddy-cop duo?"_ But when he raises his eyes to the pair in front of him again, the vibe between them is definitely not buddy-cop. Their banter is cute and platonic-sounding enough, but no one would look at these two in this moment – the hands on each other, the eye contact – and think they weren't screwing.

Simon. Simon, Simon, Simon. He is age-appropriate for Tom. He has great chemistry with Tom. And he's handsome. He's a different kind of sexy than Tom but he's holding his own. They look good together. Really, really good.

Chris rereads his "romance or no?" note and gives it a few solid underlines.

"What else do you think I can do?" Tom asks Simon. "I wanna hear about all these amazing things you're convinced I'm capable of."

"What, in front of company?"

"Try to keep it P-G."

Simon sighs with mock exasperation and looks up at the ceiling for a moment. "Well, you can fly, of course."

"Of course."

"Just flap your arms and off you go."

"Right."

"Aaaannnd you can probably start a car by sticking your feet through its floor and running. Like on _The Flintstones_."

"Uh-huh. What else?"

"And you can cut diamonds with your nipples and grate cheese on your abs."

"Okay, go on."

"And you can hold your breath underwater for six – no … sevennnnnn … years. Seven years."

Tom looks at Chris and with all seriousness says, "All true."

Very interesting. Tom isn't one to easily joke about the perception that he's superhuman. He is usually quick to be humble and to dispel any notions of him being unbreakable. But here he lets Simon have his fun and actually joins in.

Then Chris realizes something: being nonchalant about Ethan's apparent superpowers is something Benji might do at this point. Having witnessed Ethan do so many unbelievable things and live might make Benji drop his guard and have faith that things wouldn't go horribly wrong (which, of course, they would). Chris knew there was much of Simon's personality in Benji, but he hadn't realized how much.

"You know, I'm not getting any younger," Tom says to Simon. "Why don't _you_ do the plane stunt?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"It's time Benji stepped up. He's been in the field a while now, he could do it."

Simon gives Tom a few little shoulder pats as if to say "okay, buddy, that's enough for today". He then takes his hand back and says to Chris, "He's joking."

"I am not," Tom says. "Come on, I'll train you myself."

"Oh, fuck off," Simon exclaims in that very British way that basically means 'get outta here'. This tickles Tom immensely. He instantly starts giggling. But finally, after a few seconds of mirth, he gets back to business. He retracts his hand from Simon's thigh after what feels like eons and says, "The plane is definitely on the table."

"For _real_?" asks Simon in disbelief.

"Sure, we could do it. It'll be a challenge, but it's definitely doable."

"You … you know I was joking, right?"

"So was I," Chris says hastily. "Are you sure that's something you wanna do?"

"Nope," says Tom. "It's sounds terrifying. But that's usually an indication that I should try. I'll get Wade on the phone after we're done here, see what he says."

"He'll say you're nuts," says Chris.

"Wouldn't be the first time."

Chris scrawls more notes on his notepad: _"cold-open plane stunt – airbus?"_

"Have you got plans for Ethan's shirtless scene yet?" Simon asks Tom.

"We hadn't planned that far yet, no," says Tom.

"It's not _Mission: Impossible_ 'til Ethan takes his shirt off."

"Again, you could pick up a little slack for me here."

"Well, I have been working out." Simon raises the arm closest to Tom and flexes in an exaggerated way, pulling a scrunched-up face one might associate with constipation. Tom takes the opportunity to feel the muscle curving against Simon's sleeve. "But you're probably still the better option," Simon adds.

"Oh, I dunno," Tom sighs, letting go of Simon's arm as Simon lowers it. "Benji could show a little skin." He holds Simon's gaze with a hint of a smolder in his own until Simon starts to turn pink and has to look away with a sheepish smile.

Blatant flirting. Huh. Chris imagines how Benji would react to getting a compliment from Ethan about his appearance; surprise, shyness, blushing, stammering. He writes in his notepad: _"Ethan/Benji flirting"_.

"Okay, back to locations," says Tom. "Personally … I was thinking about London."

Chris's mind instantly flips back into director mode again, picturing the beautiful locations he's visited in London, imagining the sorts of sequences he could shoot in each one. "London's good."

"Tom," Simon says under his breath, suddenly serious.

Tom looks at him and says, "I love London. You know that."

"I know, but that's not why you suggested it."

"Is something wrong?" asks Chris.

"No," Tom assures him, looking at him again. "Simon thinks I'm coddling him, that's all."

"You are," Simon says.

"No, London really is a good fit."

"London's perfect," Chris assures Simon, though he's still unsure what the issue is.

"Don't worry about it," Tom murmurs to Simon.

"I'm not worried, I'm" –

Simon gets cut off when Chris's phone vibrates in his pocket. The soft buzz normally wouldn't be so intrusive, but it's as if the tension in the room has made their surroundings extra quiet. Chris considers letting it go to voice mail, but sensing Tom and Simon need to hash something out in private, he decides to take the call. He excuses himself and leaves the room.

Out in the hallway his conversation only lasts a few minutes. The call ends and he's about to go back in the room, but he stops with his hand poised in the air before the doorknob, realizing he has no way of knowing if they've finished their discussion. He stands there a moment, trying to figure out what to do. Finally he decides to just go back in. It's not as if they're not expecting him.

He feels awkward about interrupting, so he turns the doorknob carefully, slowly opens the door and listens for a moment. The door isn't visible from where they sit; it's just around a little corner, at the opposite end of the room from them, and Chris has opened the door so quietly that they continue talking, unaware that he can now hear them.

"Simon, I can't," Tom says. "I saw what it did to you on the last one."

"I would've been fine."

"I'm aware that you could've hidden it well enough. That's not the point."

Chris takes a step back, ready to back out of the room and give them a few extra minutes, but something holds him there.

"It was the only thing that made you feel better," Tom says.

"No, you did too. You … you did a lot for me."

Silence for a moment and then Tom says, "And I loved spending time with you. Getting to know you was the best thing I've ever done, but I'm just one guy. You need multiple outlets. Snowboarding just _did_ something for you, and it could very well have put you out of commission and jeopardized the shoot. I gave you my blessing because you risking a broken bone was preferable to watching you suffer through depression, but I can't risk it again and wouldn't dream of asking you to put yourself through what you went through on _Mission 3_."

_Mission: Impossible 3_ ; the first time that Simon and Tom had worked together. What had happened?

"I'm used to being away from the U.K. now," Simon insists. "I moved here when we got serious, remember? I _live_ here, Tom. Hi, I'm Simon. I'm that bloke that sleeps in bed with you."

"We each spend enough time working in the U.K. that we basically live there part-time. You're back there as soon as you start to miss it. G.P. took you away for much longer than _Mission 3_ , and _5_ could take us away for even longer. I'd like to avoid that, if possible."

"How can I get homesick if you're with me? Things are different between us now. On G.P. we were just starting out. We're established now. You're my piece of home no matter where we are."

"You know how hectic our shooting schedules are. There'll be days, even weeks, when we hardly see each other despite living and working together."

"I don't need you to babysit me. That's not what I meant."

"I wasn't suggesting that. I'm saying I need to take care of you. Me, Simon, I need to."

"Do you think I go about complaining that I'm feeling sad on every film that takes me away from home?"

"Don't call it 'feeling sad'. It's more than that and you know it. And no, I think you keep your mouth shut and suffer through it."

"Damn right. I could've done G.P. without the snowboarding. I would've been okay with a little focus."

"You're the consummate professional and that's great, really admirable, but Simon, you told me what was going on with you because we were friends. I _know_ you don't go around telling just anyone how you're feeling. I felt honored, privileged that you trusted me that much. And I _got_ it. When you explained to me what you were feeling then, what you'd felt during _Mission 3_ , I got it. I knew it wasn't just 'feeling sad' and I wasn't about to let you go back to that dark place. So I told everyone to look the other way about the snowboarding because it wasn't just a hobby. You don't know, Simon. You didn't see it from my perspective. When you came back to set from a weekend of boarding, you were just different. Everyone could see it. Just glowing and beautiful and …"

Tom trails off and there's silence again. Chris wants to poke his head around the corner to look, but he can't risk it, so he waits. For a moment he panics, thinking maybe one of them has gotten up and is coming toward him, but no, he would hear a chair moving against the floor, he'd hear the soft rustle of moving clothing.

"It's not about me thinking you can't deal," Tom says. "It's about not wanting you to have to. You trusted me once, when you confided in me. Trust me again. London is a perfect location for this movie. No one has to know why. Let me do this for you. Please."

"I would never ask. I don't want anyone to think that I would and I don't want anyone to think that I need it. Because I don't."

"I know you wouldn't ask. And maybe you don't need it, but what if you do? So what? It's not a sign of weakness. Let me give this to you. I need to. Think of _me_ as the weak one. Look at what a wuss I am. I can't stand the thought of you struggling for a few weeks even though I know how strong you are."

"What're you gonna do, hm?" Simon asks with a sigh, his voice now lower and more intimate. "Follow me round from job to job, making sure I'm okay? What about _Mission 6_ , where are we shooting that? We going back to my hometown? Shoot a chase scene through my high school?"

"We'll figure it out."

"I don't need you to do this, you know."

"I know."

"You can't always protect me."

"You know how I react to being told I can't do something."

Chris smiles at that.

"When am I gonna get to rescue you, then?" Simon asks.

"I told you before, Gorgeous … you did that a long time ago."

There's silence again and then the faint sound of soft kisses.

"I should get back to work," Simon finally says.

"You go ahead. We'll be okay on our own."

_Shit,_ Chris thinks as he backs out of the room and very slowly closes the door again. He didn't hear any chairs scraping the floor, so Simon probably hasn't gotten up yet. Still, that was too close. He shouldn't have listened so long. He shouldn't have listened at all. He moves a few feet away from the door and takes out his phone again. If someone emerges he can hastily put the phone to his ear or pretend he's just hanging up. He'd go back inside right away, but he needs a moment to process what he's heard.

It plays out in his mind like a series of scenes he's storyboarding. Tom and Simon got close during _Ghost Protocol_. It was Simon who was seen out with Tom back then; not Jeremy, not Paula. That was planned, that much was always obvious. It's not uncommon for costars to make deliberate appearances with each other out in public during filming. It's mutually beneficial. Let the press catch you out together, show everyone that a) you and your costars get along well, b) you actually have friends and hang out like a normal human being, and c) your costar has gained the (platonic) affections of a big star. Good publicity for you, your film and your costar. Simon, being the likable Brit working to establish himself in America, had been the obvious the choice. Before they'd come out, Chris had always assumed that choice had been purely strategic. Maybe it had been at first.

At some point Tom must've realized he was falling for the guy. He started doing him favors, which probably didn't raise suspicion because Tom is known for his generosity.

_The snowboard._

Simon confided in Tom about a potential mental illness triggered by being away from home too long. Or maybe Tom had noticed something was off.

_"Simon, I can't,"_ Tom had said. _"I saw what it did to you on the last one."_

Simon's depression had gotten bad. Snowboarding had taken the edge off but is also dangerous, and actors in the middle of filming shouldn't be risking themselves like that. But Tom had given Simon the go-ahead. He'd bought Simon that snowboard for more than just Simon's birthday. Tom had been making a stand, showing Simon that his mental health meant more to Tom than rules. Tom had been protecting him.

Protecting who, his friend? His lover? What had Simon been at that point? Had they been sleeping together yet or still in the wooing stages?

And now Tom's doing it again; choosing London as one of their locations to protect the man he loves.

"You're actually Ethan Hunt in real life, aren't you?" Chris whispers. He hates that he's eavesdropped, but he's also kind of glad he did. He pulls up the call logs on his phone, finds his co-writer's number and composes a quick text:

> _  
> _
> 
> "I think I just found our emotional component. Gotta discuss with TC first. Fill you in later."

__  


He reenters the room to find that despite what Simon had said about getting back to work, he hasn't moved except to turn his body more toward Tom and place his hand in Tom's lap. Tom is caressing that hand while they speak softly to one another. They stop and look up as Chris approaches. Simon looks much more content now; relaxed and a little sleepy. His cheeks are a little flushed, his lips more pink too, like someone's been kissing them hard. Tom isn't much better. Chris wonders if they have any idea what they look like.

Simon finally decides to head back down to his office. He shakes Chris's hand and apologizes for things "getting weird". Tom gives him a quick kiss goodbye, but Simon isn't quite ready to let him go. He tugs Tom by the hand a few steps away, closer to the door where they talk quietly. Chris can still just make out their words. He takes his seat and pretends not to be paying attention.

"You'll be up for that back rub tonight, yeah?" Simon murmurs, still clutching Tom's hand.

"Anytime you're ready, Gorgeous," Tom replies.

Simon glances down for a moment as though unsure what to say, or maybe he simply doesn't want to leave Tom yet. "If I had a nickel for every time you left me speechless …"

"You know I don't need a 'thank you'."

"Oh, I'll definitely thank you. Later on. I just wish I had the words right now."

"No words." Tom takes him by the waist. Simon grips Tom's upper arms. Chris looks away to give them privacy. A moment later Simon leaves and Tom comes back to his seat.

"What do you think about Benji?" Chris asks him.

"What about Benji?"

"As the love interest."

Tom laughs for a solid ten seconds at least, every few seconds trying to get himself under control and failing. Chris waits patiently, watching Tom with a soft smile. He doesn't blame Tom for thinking the suggestion is hilarious. Also, he rather likes watching his friend be overtaken by giggles.

But finally Tom notices that Chris is merely watching him serenely. He sobers and asks, "What?"

"Ethan and Benji. That's our emotional component right there. It's been sitting right in front of us all along."

"You mean like a buddy-cop thing?"

"Yes. With lots of subtext."

Tom is no stranger to subtext. No actor or writer is. Still, Tom frowns uncertainly at the idea. "Between Ethan and Benji? You think so?"

"Absolutely. Think about it. Ethan's always been Benji's idol, and Benji's been Ethan's saving grace more than once. They've been to hell and back together. They're more than just colleagues at this point. They're friends, they have a deep mutual respect for one another. I'm pretty sure they must love each other by now."

Tom thinks for a moment. "I need more. You gotta sell me on this."

"Okay, so Ethan summons Benji to Vienna to help him out, right? After their plans go wrong, I had them meeting up with Brandt right away and then Luther joins them shortly thereafter to help them find Ilsa, but what if we postpone that a while? What if Brandt calls Luther to help him find Ethan and Benji and while they're doing that, Ethan and Benji are off having adventures together? That's double the buddy-cop shenanigans _and_ we get lots of time to see how Ethan and Benji's relationship has evolved. They eventually all meet up, but for a while it's just the two of you; Benji helping Ethan, saving Ethan, worrying about Ethan, showing the audience how much this man means to him. And then in the end Benji gets taken and Ethan has to risk everything to get him back."

"Wait, _Benji_ gets taken?"

"It has to be Benji," Chris says with conviction. "That's what happens to the love interest. It can't be Ilsa because that's cliche and I don't want to do that to her. She's in trouble, sure, but she's not the damsel, and I just don't see either Brandt or Luther being taken. Ethan would work just as hard to get any of them back, but it's Benji who'll really deliver that emotional punch to the stomach. Because Benji is the heart. Ethan's the gut; Brandt's the brain; Luther's the brawn; Benji's the heart."

"Okay, but _why_ is Benji the heart? Why _not_ Brandt, why _not_ Luther? Ethan's known Luther as long, if not longer than he's known Benji."

"Because Benji's vulnerable. He's a genius and can do extraordinary things, but he's still a very normal guy. He's the audience's guide. He's the humor. He's the thing that grounds these films. He's the counterbalance to Ethan. He softens Ethan. And Ethan loves him. Of course he does, because Benji's not only had his back every step of the way but has also been the one constant source of normalcy and humor and lightness in his life."

Tom looks down at his hands and Chris notices him playing with his wedding band. Is Tom seeing the similarities between himself and Simon, and Ethan and Benji? Chris hopes so. "That could work," Tom says.

"It _will_ work. You and Simon have insane chemistry, Tom. Think back to G.P., to the scene where Ethan is about to Spider-Man his way up the side of the Burj and Benji wants so badly to encourage and reassure him but he just falls short, unable to initiate that supportive touch on the shoulder. Because they're not quite friends yet. Benji is still too in awe of Ethan to be that familiar with him. Ethan can touch Benji, but it's not the touch of a friend. It's more like a teacher reassuring his student. I'm sure there was a time like that for you and Simon, no matter how attracted you were to each other."

"Sure, in the beginning. It wore off as the G.P. shoot progressed, but yeah, he sort of tip-toed around me for a while there."

"Of course he did. Ethan and Benji are very much like you and Simon in many ways, and look how you two turned out. Fast-forward to present day. Ethan and Benji have been working together a while. Benji's more comfortable with him, refers to him as 'friend'. I'm seeing subtle points of contact between them that come easily now and give off a vibe that is much more familiar than student/teacher. I'm seeing Ethan coming back to consciousness after something went wrong, being dazed and woozy but perking up when he hears Benji's voice; Benji dropping to his knees at Ethan's side and touching his shoulder to comfort him, murmuring to him; Benji's name being the first word Ethan is able to get out."

Tom's brow is furrowed, which means the wheels in his head are spinning. "Ethan's wife is gone. He's not interested in getting into anything with Ilsa. From what you've described, she's too much like him anyway."

"She's not complementary to him. She _is_ him. They seem to flip-flop between being opponents and allies. Though it's true she's always looking out for him, they're almost like two magnets that can't figure out if they should be attracted or repelled. With Benji and Ethan there's no question; they are opposites and therefore complementary. Picture this: say we put Benji in the tux and we have Ethan comment on it. Something offhand like, 'Lookin' good, Benji.' Imagine how flustered Benji would be. It's a cute, comedic moment that showcases both Ethan's confidence and Benji's awkwardness, the way those two traits play so well off each other. And at the same time it shows how comfortable they are teasing one another. Teasing equals closeness, bonding. Teasing also equals flirting. It's a mere two-second moment, but it says so much. Ethan could flirt with Ilsa, but it would be a completely different exchange."

Tom has a little lopsided smile on his face and a faraway look in his eye. "Simon and I could do that. We … we _have_ done that."

"I'm not the least bit surprised. Bottom line: Ethan and Benji are you and Simon, so they could fall for each other just like you two have. Of course we can't actually have the film go that way for real. The studio would never go for it, but we can hint. We can subtext all over the place. We'll have to throw in a flirty moment here and there between Ethan and Ilsa to appease the studio, of course. You know how it works." Chris pulls his notepad toward him and feverishly jots down more notes. "And of course it all culminates in Benji getting snatched. The very fact that our villain will choose to take Benji in order to get to Ethan will speak volumes. It perfectly mirrors what happened in _Mission 3_ with Ethan's wife. This is perfect! I'm so glad Simon came up to say hello. Watching you two was a real eye-opener."

"Really? We were that inspiring?"

Chris stops writing, gives Tom a serious look and gently informs him, "Tom, I came back into the room and you both looked like you needed a cigarette. You two are not subtle."

"Oh," Tom says, mildly surprised.

He goes quiet as Chris finishes writing. Chris looks at him again and asks, "This isn't weirding you out, is it? Me putting so much of you guys into the script? Because we can pull it back if you want."

"No, no, it's not that. It's just … you wouldn't happen to have heard any of our conversation while you were out in the hall, did you?"

Chris realizes he's said too much, but he decides to take this as an opportunity to come clean, at least a little. He knows he's never going to feel right about having listened in. "I might've heard a snippet or two."

"The walls in this place are paper-thin," Tom mutters. "That's okay, though. I don't mind that you heard. Simon might, but … I'm just sorry you had to be present for that. That wasn't okay."

"No, it's cool. Arguments happen. Looks like you worked it out, though."

"Yeah, we're good now. He just doesn't want me giving him special treatment, you know? But it's not special treatment. I'd try just as hard to help anybody else in my cast or on my crew. If I can help, then I do it. I just happen to love him and he feels like that makes it different somehow. But what good is having money or power or status or anything else if you can't help the ones you love?"

Chris shakes his head. "My god, you are so Ethan."

Tom smiles shyly. "I'm not trying to save the world here. Just the man I love."

"Tom, everything Ethan ever does is for someone he cares for."

Tom nods, silently conceding the point.

They work together for another couple of hours, putting story elements in order and fleshing them out. When it's time for Chris to go, Tom walks him downstairs and calls for Simon to come say goodbye. They're standing by the front door in the bright, spacious front foyer when Simon joins them. Chris can tell Simon's been busy; his eyes behind his glasses have the tired, mildly stunned look of someone who's been staring at a computer screen too long and is just realizing the world outside of his Word document still exists. He's wrapped himself in a gray shawl cardigan and is carrying a mug of something hot.

"So, what'd I miss?" Simon asks them.

"A lot," Tom says. "I'll fill you in later."

"You," Chris says, pointing at Simon, "helped us tremendously. Story's not perfect yet, script's not written, but all the elements are pretty much there. And it's all thanks to you."

"Me?" Simon asks, surprised. "Which bit? What did I say that helped?"

"Mmm, probably the part when you teased Tom about being immune to death."

Simon blinks at him. "Okay."

"And when you blushed when he flirted with you, that was cute. Very Benji. And when you ran your fingers through his hair. That was good."

"I see."

"It wasn't just you," Tom tells him. "You'd be surprised what he picked up on. Apparently we're painfully obvious."

Chris thinks this is an understatement.

"I take it Benji and Brandt _aren't_ finally gonna do it," Simon says.

"'Fraid not," Chris replies. "This is better. This is real. You even get to be the damsel in distress."

Simon looks half impressed, half intrigued. "Exactly how far are we gonna push it?"

"Not sure yet," Tom chimes in. "But Chris did propose one scene where the camera cuts back to you and me getting up off the floor together, me pulling my shirt back on and you groaning about how much something hurt, so …"

"What?" Simon asks with a laugh.

"Context is everything," Tom says with a shrug. "And I'm not gonna give you any 'cause that look on your face right now is priceless."

"Well, you guys did mention Benji getting a little more action this time 'round. Exactly what sort of picture are we making here?"

"A love story," Chris replies without missing a beat. And he knows it's true, even though the script isn't written yet. His hosts seem to approve. They exchange a glance that ends with a pair of smiles, and Chris notes that even the most innocent of glances between them now looks intimate to him. As he leaves, he wonders if they're going to come off as too romantic on screen. What if they simply can't help it at this point?

Then again, Chris wonders if he minds at all. It takes him mere seconds to decide the answer is no.

END

**Author's Note:**

> In this fic I make reference to things Simon dealt with during the filming of MI3 and MI4. I got my info from print interviews, one of which I've linked to below. As far as I know, Simon does not currently refer to himself as someone who suffers from mental illness. He might, but I don't know. It's none of my business. I really wanted to make that clear, because mental health issues are really personal and I don't want anyone walking away from this fic thinking that Simon said something about himself that he didn't.
> 
> Okay, that's all. Thanks for reading. ♥
> 
>   * [Background stuff regarding Simon: MI3, MI4, Snowboarding, Alcohol, etc.](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/event/article-2705700/Simon-Peggs-incredible-journey-British-sitcom-nerd-Hollywood-hotshot.html)
>   * [Sexual Tension](http://maxwrite.tumblr.com/post/125020589712/theres-more-sexual-tension-between-hunt-and-benji)
>   * [The Heart of the Film](http://maxwrite.tumblr.com/post/124933110242/i-loved-simon-peggs-work-in-the-previous-films-i)
>   * [Love Letter to London](http://fuckyeahmi5.tumblr.com/post/125459252056/paramountpicturesuk-see-the-film-tom-cruise)
> 

> 
> **Edit:** Hi, me again, but now in 2018! I thought I'd come back and make a small correction. As I write this, Simon is doing press for _Ready Player One_ , and in [one of his interviews](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/simon-pegg-interview-made-wasnt-happy-soul-got-lost/) he confirms that he has indeed struggled with depression (it's behind a paywall. If you sign up for the 30-day free trial, you should be able to see it). He says he got help, though he doesn't specify what that was exactly. He's referring to a period in his late 30s, a time well before this fic takes place. His early 40s is when he took steps to get well.
> 
> In [this audio interview](https://player.megaphone.fm/PPY5295639144) that he did with Josh Horowitz he talks a bit about quitting drinking and how _The World's End_ is kind of biographical in many ways, which I figured (that discussion begins at around 30:15). He's been pretty open about the fact that he felt the need to cut alcohol out of his life completely, which is not something you typically do if you drink but don't have an addiction. Once again, I hesitate to use words and terms that he hasn't explicitly used in reference to himself, but at this point it feels safe enough to say that he had an alcohol addiction. Or _has_ an addiction? You always hear people in recovery talking about how they will always be in recovery no matter how long they stay clean, because that addiction is always there, and staying sober is something they have to work at daily. But for now I'll say "had", 'cause it feels safer for someone like me, who doesn't really know him.
> 
> I have no idea what it's like for him, if he gets cravings, or what terminology he uses in reference to himself when he's talking to close friends and family about it. He's never referred to himself as a recovering alcoholic or recovering addict, he's never said flat-out that he had an addiction, but at the same time that's exactly what he's been saying all this time. I can see why he wouldn't want to use those terms. There's always going to be a negative connotation to words like "addict" and "alcoholic", even if you put "recovering" in front of them. But just saying that you stopped drinking is almost nothing but positive. It's less titillating in a way, it raises fewer questions. He's very private, and seems to share the more vulnerable parts of himself in tiny little increments. He uses words very carefully, in ways that help him maintain control of his privacy. Which is why it makes me so uncomfortable to be discussing him with terms he's never used for himself.
> 
> Not that anyone's paying attention to me. It's not like I've got a megaphone and am broadcasting this to the world, or like I have a huge audience or influence. But still.
> 
> Anyway, I just wanted to update this note for future readers. And Simon, your Peggsters love you and we're all so happy that you're well and are happy, too. ♥
> 
> That's all for now.


End file.
